Indoor air is now known to often be more polluted and dangerous to human health than outdoor air even in large populated cities. The majority of people spend their time indoors. In your building, whether it’s full of tenants or employees, it’s your responsibility to help reduce these risks to their health by keeping the air they breathe clean. If your employees are using toxic materials on a regular basis, in addition to providing proper breathing filters, you should also keep up with regular maintenance of your commercial air conditioning unit to filter the air indoors. If a building is used as a factory or warehouse which is dusty or produces particles which can collect in the air, air filters should be changed more often than in any traditional setting. People who are particularly in danger of the effects of breathing in polluted indoor air are young children, elderly people, those with certain illnesses such as heart disease or respiratory problems.

Your commercial HVAC system will need to be able to filter out a wide variety of particles from the air each day. Allowing smoking in the building can increase indoor pollutants dramatically. Common cleaners, furnishings, dust, dirt, mold, airborne bacteria, fumes from paints, insulation containing asbestos, and even furniture can release pollutants into the air every day. Major sources of indoor pollution are oils, kerosene, wood, coal, and gases.

Indoor air pollution may be the result of contaminated commercial air conditioning ducts and ventilation systems, poor commercial HVAC maintenance, and poorly located outdoor air intakes. Health problems can be avoided by performing regular maintenance on the commercial HVAC installation, controlling the indoor pollution sources, increasing air ventilation throughout the building, and using air filtering devices. Opening windows can help alleviate sudden spikes in indoor air pollution. Keeping air supply vents clear can also have a positive impact on indoor air quality as well.

Many of the long term health effects that result from poor indoor air quality are noticed several years after being exposed to the pollution. The only way to prevent your employees or tenants from getting long term health problems from poor air quality is to properly maintain indoor pollution levels to a minimum. People who live and work in buildings which have high quality clean air are happier, healthier, and over all more productive.